Cut-off or safety attachment for electrical conductors



(No Model.)

J. PARKINSON MQSPRINGFIELD & 0. MILLS. GUT-OFF OR SAFETY ATTAGHMENTTOR ELECTRICAL GONDUUTORS.

Nopssmza. Patented Apr. 9, 1895.

UNITE STATES PATENT "OFFICE.

JAMES PARKINSON, MAURICE SPRINGFIELD, AND CHARLES MILLS, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

CUT-OPE 0R SAFETY ATTACHMENT FOR ELECTRICAL COND UCTORS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 537,228, dated April 9, 1895.

A li tion fil d October 10, 1894. Serial No. 525,464 (No model.) i

Improvement in Out-Offs or Safety Attach-' ments for Electrical Conductors, which improvement is fully set forth in the following specification and accompanying drawings.

Our invention consists of a novel construction of cut-off or safety attachment for electrical conductors, by means of which in the event of the breakage of any portion of said conductor, the electric fluid will be conducted away therefrom, and the continuity of its path' to said conductor will be instantly broken, the latter thus becoming a dead wire, and incapable of injuring any object coming in contact therewith, all as will be hereinafter set' forth.

Figure 1 represents a perspective view of a cutoff or safety attachment for electrical conductors embodying our invention, and a portion of a circuit to which the same is applied. Fig. 2 represents a side elevation of the attachment proper.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the two figures.

Referring to the drawings, A and B designate poles, and O and D designate wires supported thereon.

E designates a portion of a trolley wire to which the attachment embodying our invention is specially applicable.

F designates said attachment, the same consisting of the main bridge piece G, which is immovable, and is supported from the wire D, to the under side of which bridge piece the trolley wire E is secured.

H designates a movable section of said bridge piece, which is pivotally secured to the. latter, and has attached. to its upper portion a contact hook J, whose body portion K is bent back so as to partially encircle the wire 0.

L designates pieces of insulating material, which are attached to the aforesaid section H, and M designates a block which is pivoted to said insulating material, and to the under side of which is attached the wire E.

N designates a spring which has one end secured to said block M, and the other end extended over the insulating pieces L, and out of contact therewith, but in contact with the section H, when the device isin operative position.

0, designates a conductor leading from the conductor 0, down the pole B to the track P.

The operation is as follows: In ,Fig. 1, in full lines the parts are shown in operative position, and it will be evident that the electric fluid can pass in an unbroken path through'the wire E, bridge G, pivoted section H, and spring N to the block M, and the wire E, the above parts in .their operative positions thus forming a continuity for'the electric fluid, while their under sides by reason of the interposed insulating material L form a continuous track for the trolley roller at the end of the trolley pole, as is evident. If the wire E should break from any cause, it will drop, into substantially the position seen in dotted lines, the spring N being thrown.

out of contact with the section H, and the wire E thus instantly becoming a dead wire, since the insulators L prevent the current from reaching the same, and since the hook J is now in contact with the upper wire G, the current will be conveyed to the wire 0 down the pole B, and thence to the track P, or other suitable point, the body portion of said hook also serving as a stop to limit the downward movement of the section H of the bridge piece G, when the wire E breaks.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A safety attachment for electrical conductors, consisting of a bridge piece, having a pivoted portion with an insulating piece at one end, a block pivoted to said insulating piece, and a spring connected with said block and adapted to contact with said pivoted portion, said parts being combined substantially as described.

2. The herein described attachment, consisting of the bridge piece G, the section H pivoted thereto, and provided with the hook J, the block M having the springN normally in contact With the section II, said block being pivotally attached to an insulating device, which latter is secured to said section II, the above parts being combined substantially as described.

3. A bridge piece having a conductor attached thereto, a section provided with an insulating piece, and a hook or contact device connected with said section, a block havinga conductor and a spring attached thereto, said block being secured to said insulating piece, and means for conveying the electric fluid from said bridge piece,in case of breakage of a conductor, substantially as described.

4. The conductors O, D, E, E, the bridge piece depending from the conductor D, and having the pivoted portion H provided with a hook adapted to engage the conductor O, the insulating piece L on said portion H, the block M pivoted to the insulating piece L, and connected with the conductor E,and the spring N connected with the block M and and bridge,the latterconductorbeing, adapted 3 5 to serve as a conveyer for the electric fluid in case of accident, substantially as described.

JAMES PARKINSON. MAURICE SPRINGFIELD. CHARLES MILLS.

Witnesses:

JOHN A. WIEDERsHEIM, R. H. GRAESER. 

